My Only Sunshine
by SenseiGrace
Summary: Burt had promised that he would always be there for Kurt, no matter what. But the last thing he expected was for his son to get a death threat, or to come home crying. (Takes place during "Furt")


**Hey guys! Happy December! (And countdown to Christmas!)**

 **So, this year my sister Brentinator and I hosted a very small Fanfiction Secret Santa. I was chosen to write for** ** _grlnxtdr29._** **(She writes amazing stories, please check them out.)**

 **So, please. Enjoy the story!**

* * *

 _My Only Sunshine._

Burt sighed, leaning over and propping his head up with his hands. He couldn't believe it. Kurt had gotten a death threat. Someone had threatened to kill his son, his precious baby boy. Well, he could believe it, but he didn't want to.

He looked up as the door squeaked open. He could tell that Kurt was trying to come into the house and sneak to his bedroom without being noticed. "Kurt, come here!" Burt called. He understood why Kurt didn't tell him. After his heart attack and coma it didn't surprise Burt that his son didn't tell him anything. Kurt didn't want him to become stressed, and he had hardly talked to Burt about these things before all of the medical issues. But he wanted to Kurt talk to him.

When Kurt walked in, Burt felt his gut twist. Around Kurt's eyes were red and puffy, his eyes bloodshot. The more Burt looked at him the more pitiful his son looked. He was pretty sure Kurt had lost weight and he could see a fading bruise on his cheek. He felt sick just thinking about the fact that someone had done this to him. That Kurt didn't tell him about it before it had become physical bullying, why hadn't he told him when it was just verbal?

"I'm sorry..." Kurt whispered, looking down at the floor the same way a child would when they were in trouble. "I just.. I didn't want you to have another heart attack. I've been dealing with this sort of thing forever, and you're already so sick. I can't do that again, I can't go through that again.. What if you died from it? I'd been an orphan, and it'd be my fau-"

Burt held up his hand, shushing his hyperventilating son as his voice cracked and his words ran together. "C'mere." He said, holding out his arm.

Kurt collapsed into his father's chest at a force that surprised Burt. How long had his son needed to be able to be held? How long had he needed to let this all go, but couldn't? "I'm so sorry!" He cried, burying his face into Burt's flannel shirt. "I'm so, so sorry!" He hiccuped through sobs.

Burt held Kurt close. Running a hand through Kurt's silky hair as he tried to soothe him. "It's okay. You have nothing to be sorry about." He whispered, his heart aching from the pain he felt for his son. It wasn't right, Kurt was so young, so precious. He didn't deserve to be bullied, to be threatened.

Kurt sat up, tears still falling. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you..." He told Burt, looking away as he bit his lip.

Burt grabbed one of Kurt's hands. It was so tiny and soft, like his mother's. He was like Kayla in so many ways. "Hey, bud. It's alright."

Kurt looked up at him, his tear filled eyes locking with Burt's. "Dad.." he whimpered, leaning back onto his father's chest as the tears began cascading again. "He wanted to kill me... he was gonna kill me!"

Burt pulled Kurt onto his lap. The same way he did when Kurt was younger. "Shh..." He soothed, rocking his son back and forth. "It's okay, you're safe. I've gotcha.." He held Kurt long after his sobs reduced to sniffles, long after his breathing settled. He needed to feel his son's presence, Kurt's soft hair under his chin. Kurt had almost been killed, he could have lost his son.

When he looked down he realized that Kurt was asleep, and the more he looked at him the more Kurt looked like he needed it. He was a ghostly pale, and the skin beneath his eyes was so dark and pink that they looked otherworldly next to the pale complexion. Burt couldn't believe that this had happened to his son. That he hadn't noticed this had happened to his son. Why hadn't he noticed what was happening to him? The obvious pain in his son's face should have been enough to raise an alarm.

He cupped Kurt's cheek in his hand, the chubby flesh felt the same way it had when he was a baby. Reminding Burt of the promise he made to Kurt as soon as he was born. To protect him, to keep him safe no matter what the cost. What had happened to that promise? To the same promise he made to Kayla while she was on her deathbed? "I'm so sorry, Kurt." He whispered, running his hand across his son's cheek again.

* * *

Burt looked up as the door opened. "Burt? Are you here?" Burt smiled as he recognized his fianceé's voice.

"Yeah, I'm in the living room!" He answered, shifting as Kurt pushed himself closer to his father in his sleep. It was a bit more painful to hold a seventeen year old than it was to hold an eight year old. He counted himself lucky that Kurt had gotten his mother's small frame because that would have only made it more difficult.

Carole walked into the room with a few bags, all filled with steaming food from restaurants with food had been dubbed healthy enough for Burt to eat. She frowned as she saw Kurt curled up on him. "Is he okay?" She asked, knowing that Kurt didn't really like being touched, and that he had seemed to avoid it at every cost recently.

Burt sighed as Carole sat down in the armchair beside him. "No. Some jerk threatened to kill him." He told her, instinctively tightening his hold on his son. "I guess the bullying has been bad for awhile, but Kurt just never told me, I only found out earlier when the kid started taunting him. Kurt finally broke down earlier, he fell asleep in my arms a little while ago."

Carole looked at Kurt, obviously both disgusted and shocked at what she had been told. "Wow, I can't believe it. Well, I can. But still, that doesn't make it right..." She said. Burt wasn't sure if it was meant for him or if she was just thinking aloud.

"I can't help but feel like this is my fault." He admitted as he combed through Kurt's hair. "I mean, he should be able to come to me, right? Heart problems or not."

Carole sighed and laid her hand on Burt's arm. "It's not your fault, sweetheart. You can't help those medical issues and we both know Kurt is so stubborn and independent. Don't blame yourself for this, it'll only make things worse." She told him, leaning over and placing a kiss on his cheek after she finished.

Burt nodded, watching his son sleep in his arms. "I know. It's just.. He was threatened, Carole, threatened!" It was difficult for Burt to wrap his mind around that. His son had been threatened. The same premature baby he had held in the hospital seventeen years ago had been put into physically harming situations and been given death threats. All because he was different.

"What do you wanna do? We have to keep Kurt safe." She asked, looking up at Burt.

Burt shook his head. "I don't know. The school already expelled Dave, but there are other kids who are just as bad as him. What's going to keep them from hurting Kurt? From killing him?" He told her. "I know we have to do something, I just don't know what."

Carole stayed quiet, and Burt understood that. It was a difficult thing to figure out what to say next in a conversation like this. Normally you could go your whole life without ever having to live in fear of death threats, other times they are something that you live with on a daily basis.

"You know," Burt started, looking up at Carole. "It's always been like this. It may have started with parents giving us disgusted looks, or Kurt coming home from school crying because no one would even come near him. But Kayla always seemed to know what to do, telling me to ignore the looks that they were giving us, or playing games and coloring with Kurt so he could have as much of a normal childhood as possible." He stopped for a second as his throat tightened. He knew the next part would be more difficult to tell.

"Then.. then she died. Just taken away, no warnings or anything. I didn't know what to do. Kurt was still so young, and I didn't know what to do when he came home crying because everyone hated him. I didn't know what to do when people looked at him like he was a piece of trash. And because of that, we grew apart instead of closer, I let him do his thing and he let me do mine. Yeah, we would both get together and work in the shop on Saturdays, and we would make dinner together every Friday. But it wasn't the sort of relationship we needed as a father and son. I still think he doesn't quite trust me the same way he trusted Kayla. If he did, I don't think he would have kept the bullying such a secret. I'm just now noticing the bruises on him. I don't know what to do, Carole." He vented, feeling a weight lift of his chest as he finished. He wondered if he should have let this all out sooner.

Carole sighed, locking eyes with Burt. "Do what you think is best. Wether that be to make sure whoever bullied Kurt is kept away from him, to find someone to make sure he isn't put in any dangerous situations, or to completely try a different school." She told him, grabbing his hand and brushing her thumb against his rough knuckles. "Also, talk to him, ask Kurt what he wants. Make him know that he can talk to you when something is wrong. You're his father, Burt. I'm sure you'll figure something out."

* * *

Burt bit the pad of his thumb. He had wiggled out from underneath Kurt's sleeping body and gone outside, hoping the cold night air would help him think.

He wished he could solve these problems half as well as Kayla had. She had been a natural when it came to comforting or completely taking Kurt's mind off of the bullying. Something Burt wished he had now that she wasn't there, especially now that the bullying was worse.

He still remembered the first time Kurt had come home from school crying.

* * *

 _Burt looked up as the school bus stopped at his house. He smiled at Kayla who grinned back, her eyes glowing with excitement as she stood up and ran to the door. Ready to welcome her son home from school as Burt followed behind her at a much slower pace._

 _Kayla gasped when she saw her son's tear filled eyes. "Baby, what's wrong?" She asked, falling to her knees to be at the height of her petite son._

 _He collapsed into her arms as the tears in his eyes cascaded with loud sobs. They wracked his little body and Kayla pulled him close. "It's okay, babe. I've gotcha. Everything is alright now." She soothed, gently running a hand through his hair while holding him closer with the other._

 _When Kurt's sobs began to quiet, Kayla picked him up and carried him inside. She sat on the sofa and held him just as close as she had only a few moments ago. "What's wrong, Kitten?" She asked, pulling a blanket over the two of them and continuing to brush through Kurt's chestnut hair._

 _Burt smiled as Kayla called him that. She had given Kurt the pet name through his many antics to get a cat. He had some sort of obsession with them, from the many drawings on the fridge, and the way it was always put on a wish list, to the way he had been dressed up as a cat the past two years for Halloween._

 _Kurt looked down at his tiny hands, still sniffling every few minutes. "They hate me." He told them, fiddling with his small fingers. "They said I couldn't play with them, then they pushed me to the ground!" He began to hyperventilate, tears filling his swollen eyes again. "They said I was stupid and that they wouldn't play with me anymore! No one plays with me, mama! They all hate me! They think I'm stupid!" He wailed, squeezing his eyes shut and balling his fists as he cried._

 _Kayla bit her lip as she watched her son cry. "Baby." She whispered, pulling him onto her lap. "You're not stupid at all. They're all just jealous because you're so special."_

 _Burt looked up at Kayla, but she kept her focus on her son. She picked him up and walked over to a small jar sitting on the top of their fireplace. "You know what, babe?" She said, shifting so he could comfortably look at her._

 _He sniffed and looked up at her, his left thumb placed just inside of his mouth. "What, mama?" He asked, his voice raw from crying._

 _She looked over at Burt who nodded at her silent request. The jar held spare change that Kayla or Burt would put in there to save up for small outings. Even though Burt had become Lima's best mechanic, they still didn't have a lot of money. But they enjoyed spending the evening together as a family at a restaurant or a movie, and the jar of spare change allowed them to do it without pulling too much out of their pockets. "I think we should go out tonight, what do you think, Kitten?" She asked, smiling as she waited for the answer._

 _Kurt gasped and nodded, his face lighting up. "That would be fun! can we go, please?" He asked hopefully, looking back and forth between his parents._

 _Kayla nodded, putting Kurt down on the floor. "Come on, let's go get ready." She told him, taking his hand in hers._

 _Burt stood up and followed behind them as she took Kurt into the bathroom and ran a bath. He watched as the two of them had a quiet conversation, he could tell she was trying to get Kurt's mind completely off of the day he had._

 _He smiled as he watched the two of them, he loved watching Kayla with Kurt. Kayla had been expected to miscarry Kurt, and they both almost died while she was in labor. They were told it was a miracle that either of them had survived and that Kurt was definitely a special baby. But they didn't need to be told that to believe that Kurt was anything but special, Kurt was already the most precious thing in their eyes. Kayla made sure he knew it._

 _Kayla wrapped a towel around Kurt and pulled him out of the tub, gently drying and styling his silky hair. It used to have a small wave to it, much like Kayla's long curls, but it had lost them as he aged. "Hey, babe. Why don't you help me pick out an outfit for daddy?" She asked, helping him step into a pair of black pants._

 _Kurt grinned, squeezing his eyes shut when he did. "Okay!" He exclaimed happily, slipping into a grey long sleeved shirt._

 _Burt raised his eyebrow when he caught Kayla's eye. "Really?" He mouthed, chuckling as she giggled and nodded._

 _Kayla took Kurt to their room, placing him on the bed and opening the closet door. She pulled out a green plaid shirt. "What do you think of this one, Kitten?" She asked._

 _Kurt hummed, squinting as he looked at the shirt. "I think he should wear the red plaid one. It looks better on him." He answered, swinging his feet back and forth. "Actually, I think we should just get daddy a new wardrobe, this stuff is all old."_

 _Kayla burst out laughing at Kurt's answer, and Burt walked in and scooped up Kurt. "What's wrong with my plaid shirts, bud?" He asked, tickling Kurt's sides._

 _Kurt gasped as Burt moved his fingers up and down his ticklish sides. "Daddy! Daddy, stop!" He squeaked, squirming away from his father. "Plaid shirts aren't bad! Just let me go!" He squealed through bursts of laughter and gasps._

 _Burt laughed, tickling harder. "You have to say the magic words!" He insisted. He was happy that he could make his son laugh, even if it wasn't in the most desirable way._

 _Kurt's laugher increased and his breaths became more desperate. "I don't know them, daddy!" He cried, trying to pull away from his father. "Daddy! Stop!"_

 _Kayla placed her hands on her hips. "Burt, let him go." She said, trying to hide her own laughter._

 _Burt sighed. "You win this time, bud." He said, releasing his son._

 _Kurt made a nose dive off of the bed and raced down the hall. Only peeking through the door once to make sure that he wasn't being followed._

 _Kayla sighed and collapsed on the bed next to Burt, her hair flowing out in all directions. "I can't believe that five year olds are so judgemental..." She mused, looking up at the ceiling as her eyes became misty. "Imagine what will happen when he gets to middle or high school."_

 _Burt brushed her chestnut curls away from her face. "Hey," he whispered, kissing her cheek. "It'll be alright. Don't worry about those days yet, they're not going to be here for years. And you'll be upset if you miss Kurt growing up because you were worrying the whole time."_

 _Kayla bit her lip as she nodded slowly. "Yeah, you're right." She said, wiping her eyes. "Lets go have a good night with him."_

* * *

Kurt rubbed his eyes as he sat up. "Dad?" He whispered sleepily.

Burt smiled, walking over to Kurt. "Hey, bud." He greeted, wrapping an arm around Kurt. "I wanna talk to you." He told him.

Kurt leaned into his father's hold. "What is it?" He asked, yawning.

Burt chuckled. "Kurt, I love you." He started, pulling Kurt closer. "But we need to talk more often. This bullying has gotten out of hand, you were threatened, Kurt. Threatened. Someone wanted to kill you, son." He said.

Kurt bit his lip and looked down at his hands. Burt's gut clenched, he looked so much like Kayla when he did that, they had so many of the same mannerisms that it hurt. "I know.." Kurt whispered, his voice barely audible. "I just didn't want you to worry..."

Burt sighed, it always came back to the heart problems. "Kurt, I worry about you when I know that this sort of thing is going on and I don't know about it. This is serious, bud. You could have been killed, and if what Finn told me about the rest of the bullying is true, it means that it's not only been going on since the end of last year, but it's also become very physical." He told him. "What do you want to do about this?"

Kurt looked up at him, his eyes filled with disbelief. "Me?"

Burt nodded. "Kurt, I'm not as good at this as your mother was. I'm pretty sure you were born with a handbook just for her. I just don't know how to react in these situations." Burt confessed, watching as Kurt's face softened and he tilted his head slightly. "I want you to know that you can talk to me, Kurt. You don't have to keep this all bottled up inside. So what do you want, bud?"

Kurt's eyes watered as what his father told him sunk in. "I wanna get away from Karofsky, and all of the other bullies. I can't go back there..." he told Burt, bitting his lip again.

Burt pulled Kurt to his chest, needing to be close to him again. "You don't have to. Don't be afraid, you're safe now." He told him, rubbing Kurt's back. "I know about that school in Westerville, Dalton Academy. Your mother and I looked it up when we originally looked at high schools to send you to. I know that it has a zero tolerance for bullying, and right now, I think that's something you need, bud. You need to be free from all of this hate."

Kurt sobbed into Burt's shirt. "Thank you!" He exclaimed as he continued crying.

Burt pressed a kiss on the top of Kurt's fluffy hair. "You deserve this, Kurt. You deserve to be happy just as much as everyone else." He said, trying to soothe his crying son. "Don't let anyone try to tell you otherwise."

And Burt knew what he said was true. He would stand by that and the promise he made to both Kurt and Kayla. He knew that he wouldn't always be the perfect dad to Kurt, and that he would always wish Kayla was around to help when things got rough. But he knew he could do this. Or, at least he would try his hardest, for Kurt.

 _The End._

* * *

 **So, I hope you enjoyed.**

 **I've always loved Burt and Kurt's relationship. Burt is like, one of the greatest dad's ever. But anyway, when I read the submission form for the gift requirements I was so happy to find out that I would be writing a story about this amazing relationship, but I was even more excited to find out that I would be writing a story for such an amazing author.**

 **This idea literally came to me while I was in the car, I can't remember when the title name came to me. (Yes, it is based off of the song "You Are My Sunshine".) It took me about three (long) days and came to a total of over three thousand words. And I'm pretty proud of it.**

 **So, thanks to Wild Birdie (my beta), and a big thanks to grlnxtdr29 for being a part of my Secret Santa!**

 **Thank you for reading, don't forget to fave and review!**


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